Spud-u-like contracts

LESS contentious potato processing contracts are a step nearer following successful discussions between the NFU and processors.

Producer guidelines are being developed by the NFU to address problems which were identified at a meeting with the Potato Processors Association. These include rejection and deduction procedures, acceptance standards, payment terms and provision of haulage.

"We are not trying to dictate to processors what the price or standard of produce should be," says NFU potato chairman Richard Watson Jones. "We want to develop areas where there is ambiguity."

Meetings with individual companies are now under way, and resulting grower guidelines are expected to be in place in time for next seasons contracts. &#42